Dear Father,

    I hope you are doing well on the trading ships. I am writing to you because I wanted to share some news. First of all, this past month I have been working very hard on my reading skills! And to my surprise I am now able to read an entire book all by myself. I am looking forward to reading with you as we used to do in my younger years.  Also, I wanted to warn you, many people throughout the village have been spreading rumors about a life taking disease that will be coming our way. My suspicions arise as I know you are away, but I want to make sure you are okay. See you soon.

From your dearest daughter,

Sarah

Chapter: 13

Date: 1347, October, England, Hollow Wood Port 9:00am 

      I wish I could remember more; all I remember is the deadly screams of my enemies. But I am glad it took their sorrow away; their pitying looks couldn't save them. Now that I think about it, I internally enjoyed watching them suffer. When it took away our lives, I was determined to make sure it took theirs. 

      “Come along, Binx! Let’s go see father!” I said, picking up Binx. 

Binx was my darling cat. Black as night, with fluorescent pine colored eyes. 

       “Sarah, hurry up, Sweetheart! I don’t want you wandering off,” Mother said, grabbing my hand.  I will never forget how soft my mother's hands were. Her heart was pure with love. 

      “Coming, Mother,” I replied, “Which ship is father on?” 

      “I don’t know dear, no more stalling! Let’s go find him,” Mother said softly, continuing to hold my hand. “Get your brother, and let’s go.” 

      I grabbed Will’s hand and led him to the ships behind mother, being cautious of where I stepped. I played this game my entire life. If you step on one of the cracks, you would have bad luck for the rest of your life. It was harder now that leaves covered the entire dirt road.  

      We ran along the road up to the ships, where we would meet father after months of experiencing his disappearance.   It looked as if everyone was a statue, looking upon the enormous ships. Before we knew it our joints fused at the sight of it. It really was astonishing. The scent of the salty sea water tickled my nose.  

      Within 50 feet in front of us stood twelve ships coming back from the Black Sea. The sound of the waves crashing against the ships danced in my ears. The east wind howled through my hair. 

      “Where are all the people, Mother? I don’t see anyone on the ships?” I questioned, bringing Binx close to my chest. 

      “I am not sure honey, I can’t see much,” Mother said. She tried protecting her eyes from the burning fog with her hands, just as you would do when in contact with sunlight. 

      “Mummy, I am scared. What if something happened to father?” Will bellowed to Mother. His navy blue hat covered most of his face, but the terror in his voice was indisputable. 

      “Oh Will, there is nothing to fear. I am sure he will be alright.” 

      A bloody scream came from one of the ships, sending a chill down my spine. 

      “They are dead! They are all dead!” 

      “We have been cursed by God.” 

      The evil forebodings that have been following me for the past week have come alive. 

      Without hesitation Mother took off running to the dock, leaving me and Will behind. I couldn't stay behind; my mind was firmly focused on finding my father. Holding Will’s hand tight, locking my arm tight around Binx, I ran.

      I remember what I saw that day. Men lying dead on the boat. Blood absorbed into the ship's old wood; everywhere you walked rats would swerve around your feet. You could hear the faint sound of maggots nipping away at people’s open wounds. I tried to be careful of where I stepped, but I tripped over a dead man's arm that was covered in boils the size of eggs, peas, and some as big as an average apple. The sight of it made me want to puke. 

      From that day weeks had passed. The hundreds of bodies that lay dead on the street multiplied, turning into thousands. 

      “They are really piling up out there. On one hand, we are all quite paranoid. And on the other, keeping your children safe, it’s a full time job!” Father said with humor. 

      The room was silent; Father tried to lighten the mood, but it is hard to keep good spirits when each morning all you see is your once loved neighbors get thrown onto the wall of bodies.  It was like a bolder, crashing home after home. The Jefferson’s were the nicest neighbors! They were like family to us, but just like many others, they got crushed with the disease. 

      Mother was sniffling on the other side of the room, sitting on the floor. It looked as if she was in a trance. She refused to open any curtains or open any doors. It was unfortunate; she started starving herself due to the paranoia of consuming the sickness through food. 

      “Mother, are you feeling alright?” I asked with concern.

      “What are we going to do? We are running out of herbs!” Mother argued, scrunching the tissue she held in her hand. 

      My mother filled the room with herbs to try to reduce the chance of us getting sick. The thought of breathing in the disease sent chills down our spines. We all hoped herbs would help; smelling fresh tulips is much better than getting wafts of dead corpses.

      “Laura, it will be okay. We must keep high hopes that this madness will one day go away,” Father said. 

      He went over to mother and sat next to her. Then I joined them, leaning in for a hug. Will and Binx came along to join. 

      “We must pray to God that we are all okay, and for further safety,” Father spoke. I sat on his lap; I could feel his grayed stubble along my cheeks. 

      “Our father, we are here praying today asking for your forgiveness. Our sins are now acting upon us. Send us a sign of what to do. Save the righteous, save the holey. Take away this horrid disease. In return we will no longer sin. In your name, we pray,  Amen.” 

-Lizzy H.